Cypripedioideae

2025-06-15T23:44:36Z

2607:FEA8:E23:2500:D9CB:CB8A:3147:AC41: /* Distribution */

{{Short description|Subfamily of orchids}}
{{Automatic taxobox
| name = Lady's slipper orchid|image = Paphiopedilum 2.jpg
| image_caption = Slipper orchid of the genus ''Paphiopedilum''
| taxon = Cypripedioideae
| authority = Kostel.
| subdivision_ranks = Genera
| subdivision = See text and [[Taxonomy of the orchid family]].
| range_map = Cypripedioideae - Distribution map - journal.pone.0038788.jpg
| range_map_caption = Cypripedioideae genera range
}}

'''Cypripedioideae''' is a [[subfamily]] of [[Orchidaceae|orchid]]s commonly known as '''lady's slipper orchids''', '''lady slipper orchids''' or '''slipper orchids'''. Cypripedioideae includes the [[genus|genera]] ''[[Cypripedium]], [[Mexipedium]], [[Paphiopedilum]], [[Phragmipedium]]'' and ''[[Selenipedium]]''.<ref>{{cite book |author=Cash, C. |year=1991 |title=The Slipper Orchids |publisher=Timber Press |isbn=0-88192-183-1}}</ref> They are characterised by the slipper-shaped [[pouch (orchids)|pouch]]es (modified [[Labellum (botany)|labella]]) of the [[flower]]s – the pouch traps insects so they are forced to climb up past the [[staminode]], behind which they collect or deposit [[pollinium|pollinia]], thus fertilizing the flower. There are approximately 165 species in the subfamily.{{citation needed|date=May 2024}}

==Description==
All representatives of the Cypripedioideae are perennial, herbaceous plants. The fleshy roots sometimes possess a veil. The leaves are arranged spirally or in two rows, the shoot is slender or compressed. In the bud, the leaves are rolled and the leaf blade is plikat (folded) or the leaves are folded in the bud, smooth and leathery. There is no dividing tissue between leaf and shoot.{{cn|date=January 2023}}

The [[inflorescence]] of the Cypripedioideae are terminal and mostly unbranched. The flowers are spiral or in two lines on the shoot, they are [[Resupination|resupinated]]. The petals are in two threefold circles, with mostly two petals of the outer circle are completely fused. The [[Labellum (botany)|labellum]] forms a sac-like structure. The ovary is under constant and one-chambered or three-chambered. Two fertile [[Stamen|stamens]], a staminode and [[Style (botany)|style]] are fused into a complex structure. The stylus is short and thick, the [[Stigma (botany)|stigma]] is large and convex, the central lobe of the stigma is larger than the two lateral ones. The two lateral stamens are fertile, the pollen grains are glued together to form a paste or formed into connected pollinia in some ''[[Phragmipedium]]'' species. The middle, barren stamen is shield-shaped widened. The fruits are mostly capsule fruits, with ''Selenipedium'' they are berry-like. They contain numerous flattened seeds, about a millimeter long and 0.1 millimeters wide. In contrast, the seeds of ''Selenipedium'' are lens-shaped and have a hard seed coat.{{cn|date=January 2023}}

Chromosome numbers vary within the subfamily over a wide range from 2n=20 in ''[[Cypripedium]]'' to 26 to 44 chromosomes in ''[[Paphiopedilum]]''. The chromosomes are quite large.{{cn|date=January 2023}}

The species in this subfamily form trap flowers in which insect access to the saclike lip from the front is quite easy. The inside is designed in such a way that the insects climb out of the flower past the stigma and the stamens and thereby pollinate the flower.
[[File:Lady_Slippers_in_old_growth_forest_near_a_lake_in_Lunenburg_County,_Nova_Scotia,_Canada.jpg|thumb|[[Pink lady's slipper]]s in [[Nova Scotia]], Canada]]

==Distribution==
The species in the subfamily Cypripedioideae are found in northern South America and Central America (''Mexipedium'', ''Phragmipedium'', ''Selenipedium''), circumboreal in North America, Europe, Africa (Algeria<ref name="Fondazione Pro Herbario Mediterraneo 2019 p. ">{{cite journal | title=Découverte de Cypripedium calceolus (Orchidaceae) au Djurdjura (Algérie), nouvelle pour l'Afrique du Nord | journal=Flora Mediterranea | publisher=Fondazione Pro Herbario Mediterraneo | volume=29 | year=2019 | issn=1120-4052 | doi=10.7320/flmedit29.207 | page=| doi-access=free }}</ref>) and in northern Asia (''Cypripedium'') as well as in subtropical and tropical Southeast Asia (''Paphiopedilum''). They do not occur in Australia and Africa. The spread could have started from a center of origin in Central America.{{cn|date=January 2023}}

==Taxonomy==
{{Main|Taxonomy of the Orchidaceae}}
Unlike most other orchids, slipper orchids have two fertile [[anther]]s — they are "diandrous". For that reason, experts have debated whether this [[clade]] should be classified within the orchid family ([[Orchidaceae]]), or whether they should compose a separate family altogether called Cypripediaceae.<ref>Rasmussen, F. N. 1985. "Orchids". In R. M. Dahlgren, H. T. Clifford, and P. F. Yeo [eds.], ''The families of the monocotyledons''. Springer Verlag, Berlin.</ref> Around the year 2000, [[molecular phylogenetics]] and DNA sampling have come to play an increasingly important role in classification.<ref>K. W. Dixon, S. P. Kell, R. L. Barrett and P. J. Cribb (eds) 2003. "[https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Russell_Barrett/publication/234814296_DNA_data_and_Orchidaceae_systematics_a_new_phylogenetic_classification/links/00463523d4084c70e1000000.pdf DNA Data and Orchidaceae Systematics: A New Phylogenetic Classification]". ''Orchid Conservation''. pp. 69–89. Natural History Publications, Kota Kinabalu, Sabah.</ref> This has led to the conclusion that recognition of a distinct family Cypripediaceae would be inappropriate.<ref>{{Cite journal | doi = 10.1016/j.ympev.2010.03.003| title = Phylogenetic relationships within Orchidaceae based on a low-copy nuclear coding gene, Xdh: Congruence with organellar and nuclear ribosomal DNA results| journal = Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution| volume = 56| issue = 2| pages = 784–795| year = 2010| last1 = Górniak | first1 = M. | last2 = Paun | first2 = O. | last3 = Chase | first3 = M. W. | url = https://s3.amazonaws.com/academia.edu.documents/37078029/Gorniak_2010.pdf?response-content-disposition=inline%3B%20filename%3DPhylogenetic_relationships_within_Orchid.pdf&X-Amz-Algorithm=AWS4-HMAC-SHA256&X-Amz-Credential=AKIAIWOWYYGZ2Y53UL3A%2F20191231%2Fus-east-1%2Fs3%2Faws4_request&X-Amz-Date=20191231T194025Z&X-Amz-Expires=3600&X-Amz-SignedHeaders=host&X-Amz-Signature=b84f9d55edf7952e72ea948de369002140b9ea2f415b2259ba20af3759a1f46c| archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20191231194111/https://s3.amazonaws.com/academia.edu.documents/37078029/Gorniak_2010.pdf?response-content-disposition=inline%3B%20filename%3DPhylogenetic_relationships_within_Orchid.pdf&X-Amz-Algorithm=AWS4-HMAC-SHA256&X-Amz-Credential=AKIAIWOWYYGZ2Y53UL3A%2F20191231%2Fus-east-1%2Fs3%2Faws4_request&X-Amz-Date=20191231T194025Z&X-Amz-Expires=3600&X-Amz-SignedHeaders=host&X-Amz-Signature=b84f9d55edf7952e72ea948de369002140b9ea2f415b2259ba20af3759a1f46c| url-status = dead| archive-date = 2019-12-31| pmid=20211743| bibcode = 2010MolPE..56..784G}}</ref>

[[Image:Cleaned-Cypripedium calceolus guckusko.jpg|upright|thumb|Lady's slipper orchid (''[[Cypripedium calceolus]]'')]]

The subfamily Cypripedioideae is [[monophyletic]] and consists of five genera:

:* ''[[Cypripedium]]'', found across much of [[North America]], as well as in parts of [[Europe]] (one species), [[Africa]] (only in [[Algeria]] has been discovered in 2019<ref>Walid, Nemer & Rebbas, Khellaf & Krouchi, Faiza. (2019). Découverte de Cypripedium calceolus (Orchidaceae) au Djurdjura (Algérie), nouvelle pour l’Afrique du Nord. Flora Mediterranea. 29. 207-214. 10.7320/FlMedit29.207. </ref>) and [[Asia]]. The state flower of [[Minnesota]] is the showy lady's slipper (''[[Cypripedium reginae]]''); the pink lady's slipper (''[[Cypripedium acaule]]'') is the official flower of the [[Provinces and territories of Canada|Canadian province]] of [[Prince Edward Island]].
:* ''[[Mexipedium]]'', a [[monotypic taxon|monotypic]] genus, consisting of a single species that was found in a single locality in Oaxaca, Mexico.
:* ''[[Paphiopedilum]]'', found in the tropical forests of [[southeast Asia]] reaching as far north as southern [[China]]. ''Paphiopedilum'' is quite easy to cultivate and therefore is popular among orchid enthusiasts. In fact, over-collection of this genus has been so extensive that many species are now sub-viable in their natural habitats.
:* ''[[Phragmipedium]]'', found across northern South and Central America, is also easy to cultivate as it requires lower [[temperature]]s than ''Paphiopedilum'', eliminating the need for a [[greenhouse]] in many areas.
:* ''[[Selenipedium]]'', found in [[Central America|Central]] and [[South America]].

== Intergeneric hybrids ==
Hybrids between the genera in this subfamily are placed in the following nothogenera:<ref>[https://www.rhs.org.uk/plants/pdfs/plant-registration-forms/list-of-orchid-genera-with-components.pdf Alphabetical One-Table List of Genera and Intergeneric Hybrids], Royal Horticultural Society, 2017.</ref>
* [[× Cyphiopedilum|× ''Cyphiopedilum'']] (''Cphd.'') = ''Cypripedium'' × ''Paphiopedilum''
* [[× Cyphragmipedium|× ''Cyphragmipedium'']] (''Cgd.'') = ''Cypripedium'' × ''Phragmipedium''
* [[× Phragmipaphium|× ''Phragmipaphium'']] (''Phrphm.'') = ''Paphiopedilum'' × ''Phragmipedium''
Hybrids with genera outside of the subfamily are not known as of 2017.

== References ==
{{Reflist}}

== Further reading ==
* Cox, A. V., A. M. Pridgeon, V. A. Albert, and M. W. Chase. 1997. [https://web.archive.org/web/20060603233043/http://folk.uio.no/victoraa/Cox_1997.pdf Phylogenetics of the slipper orchids (Cypripedioideae: Orchidaceae): nuclear rDNA ITS sequences]. ''Plant Systematics and Evolution'' 208: 197–223. [https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007%2FBF00985442 Abstract]
* Pridgeon, A. M.; Cribb, P. J.; Chase, M. W. & F. N. Rasmussen (1999): ''Genera Orchidacearum'' Vol. 1, Oxford U. Press. {{ISBN|0-19-850513-2}}

== External links ==
* {{Commons category-inline|Cypripedioideae|''Cypripedioideae''}}
* {{Wikispecies-inline|Cypripedioideae|''Cypripedioideae''}}
* [http://www.slipperorchid.org/ The Slipper Orchid Alliance]
* [http://www.slipperorchids.info/ SlipperOrchids.info]

{{Taxonbar|from=Q132226}}

[[Category:Cypripedioideae| ]]
[[Category:Asparagales subfamilies]]
[[Category:Provincial symbols of Prince Edward Island]]

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Cypripedioideae